


Butch vs. Slut Rivalry and the Mutual Misogyny Between Isabela & Aveline [Meta]

by osteophage



Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Criticism, Gen, Meta, Misogyny, Nonfiction, Sexual Harassment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:35:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23157175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/osteophage/pseuds/osteophage
Summary: Metacommentary on the sexual politics between Isabela and Aveline.
Relationships: Isabela & Aveline Vallen
Kudos: 5
Collections: March Meta Matters Challenge





	Butch vs. Slut Rivalry and the Mutual Misogyny Between Isabela & Aveline [Meta]

**Author's Note:**

> This work is being posted to AO3 for the March Meta Matters Challenge, originally posted to [Pillowfort on March 14, 2020](https://www.pillowfort.social/posts/1149957).

In Dragon Age II, the relationship between Isabela and Aveline is just one of several hostile relationships between Hawke's companions. Unlike the magic-oriented conflicts between other characters, though, their animosity derives almost entirely from judgements about having sex with either too many people or too few. This is... not unrealistic, as bad behavior goes. However, what I'm going to argue here is more than just pointing out how they're not very nice to each other. 

Over the course of the game, the trajectory of their banter shows Aveline adjusting her behavior toward Isabela while Isabela's behavior remains exactly the same, ultimately [framing](https://www.pillowfort.social/posts/892633%20framing) Isabela's perspective as the "wiser" of the two. Isabela is never held accountable for her deliberate, recurring acts of sexual harassment -- and Aveline is written as learning confidence by looking to Isabela for insight, despite Isabela being the very same woman who's always tearing her down. 

To make this post readable to folks who haven't played the game, I'm including a brief overview of who Aveline and Isabela are as characters. Feel free to skip this if you're already familiar. From there, for simplicity's sake, I'm focusing on their walking dialogue to analyze the embedded butch vs. slut framework of antagonism, never fully resolved. 

#### Intro to Aveline & Isabela's Characterization

**Aveline Vallen, the guard,** is a tank of a warrior (whom Isabela describes as "a woman-shaped battering ram"). One of her main drives in life is to protect other people, especially those closest to her. The scene where she's first introduced into the game shows her [defending her wounded husband from the darkspawn](https://youtu.be/F7UfzZIVAUA?t=42), declaring, "They will not have you. Not while I breathe." 

Relative to the other women in the game, I'd say she reads as somewhat butch, and generally speaking the fan reception seems to agree. Or at least, so I gather, judging by [all the](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2312) [multiple](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2815) [mods](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2211) for a ["pretty Aveline"](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2780) or ["prettier Aveline,"](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2181) to give her [more makeup and her armor less coverage](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2828), or to make her ["decent looking,"](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2774) ["more attractive,"](http://%20https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2415) ["more feminine,"](http://%20https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2227) ["more female,"](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/3409) ["less mannish,"](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2717) and ["less scary."](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2522)

**Captain Isabela, the pirate,** is a confident, freewheeling rogue. A lot of her dialogue (as well as comments from other characters) indicates that she's both casually self-assured and sexually assertive. The scene where she's first introduced in the game shows her at the local dive bar, drinking and [fending off a group of men who claim she owes them money](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jkp36J9eQZA), which establishes that she frequently gets into trouble but knows how to handle it, too. 

Also... she doesn't wear pants. You have to download a mod [if you want her to wear pants](https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage2/mods/2315). This in conjunction with the number of times in the game she gets called a slut (or various synonyms thereof) means that she's yet another example of how women of color are hypersexualized in fiction. 

Note: If this is the first you're being introduced to the relevance of race on this subject, I recommend reading up on racial stereotypes such as [the Jezebel [pdf]](https://www.blackfeminisms.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Jezebel-Reading-List.pdf), [the Spicy Latina](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SpicyLatina), and [the belly dancer](http://www.arabstereotypes.org/why-stereotypes/what-orientalism/veils-harems-belly-dancers). 

### An Analysis of Dialogue in Acts 1-3

The canon dialogue between Isabela and Aveline establishes the following consistent traits: Isabela considers Aveline to be masculine and sexually undesirable to men. Aveline considers Isabela to be distasteful for having sex too indiscriminately. Isabela is quicker, more creative, and more assertive in coming up with insults and barbed remarks, compared to Aveline, who is more awkward, more conventional, and more prone to falling back on patterns. The two both try to take jabs at each other, but Isabela is better at it. 

The dialogue in Act 1 establishes their initial hostility. By Act 2, Aveline becomes more resigned and begins looking to Isabela's perspective as a source of insight and reassurance. Act 3, though, establishes that Isabela's same attitude toward her persists throughout. 

#### Act 1 

**In Act 1, several of the dialogue exchanges between them follow this basic formula: Isabela provokes Aveline, and Aveline expresses irritation or discomfort.** In some cases, Aveline reacts through threats of physical violence. Other times, it's through sexual insults like "slattern" and "whore."

For instance, here's Isabela asking Aveline about her dead husband:

> **Isabela:** Do men find you intimidating? What about Wesley? Did he?
> 
> **Aveline:** Isabela...
> 
> **Isabela:** What? Too soon?
> 
> **Aveline:** Too soon, too personal, too... everything coming from you!
> 
> **Isabela:** Ooh, sore spot?
> 
> **Aveline:** If you don't shut up, I'll give you a sore spot.

And here's Isabela turning a comment about her hair into another remark about scaring people:

> **Isabela:** You have such pretty hair. What a lovely color.
> 
> **Aveline:** Other children used to laugh at me for having ginger hair.
> 
> **Isabela:** Really? Aww. I bet you were cute. Did you have pigtails?
> 
> **Aveline:** Sometimes.
> 
> **Isabela:** How precious! Little Aveline, running around the village with her flaming orange pigtails streaming behind her...
> 
> **Isabela:** ...and little boys all scattering and screaming for mercy as she approached.
> 
> **Aveline:** Shut up, whore.

You get the picture.

The strangest thing about all this, to me, is that **Aveline seems to take these descriptions (being "intimidating" to men, making little boys run away, etc.) as something wrong or shameful** , to be responded to with hostility, and I just don't see why she would look at it like that. Especially in her line of work -- an intimidating presence should be an asset. On a more personal front, this may pose a threat to her prospects as a heterosexual woman, but in the game it seems very infrequent that she pursues a partner anyway. I figure that this is one of those things where the player is expected to fill in the gaps -- it's supposed to intuitively "make sense" that being "intimidating" (to men, specifically) should be seen as embarassing. But my experience with butch women has been that many of them are happy to be seen as "mannish" and just happy to be seen as intimidating, so I don't take that point of view for granted.

Other exchanges establish that Aveline is not very good at coming up with insults. This fits with a general theme to Aveline's characterization -- her social awkwardness -- and combines with Isabela's barbed commentary to make Isabela look quick-witted and sharp by comparison. For example, here's one that starts out with the usual pattern: Isabela provoking her and Aveline swinging back with a sexual insult.

> **Isabela:** Well. "Captain." Can I call you captain? You can call me captain.
> 
> **Aveline:** I won't be doing that.
> 
> **Isabela:** Neither will I. Because you're a guard captain. No real authority. Not like on a ship.
> 
> **Aveline:** Well, you would know about having a large number of men under you.
> 
> **Isabela:** You've been waiting to use that one. Did you practice?
> 
> **Aveline:** Shut up.

In another exchange, Aveline fires first for once, and Isabela's patronizing retort draws on the expectation that sexual desirability to men should be important to her.

> **Isabela:** [upon entering the brothel] "The difference between whores and courtesans is... well, they have nicer shoes."
> 
> **Aveline:** I think your shoes are fine.
> 
> **Isabela:** Look at you being funny! That might even get you a man someday.

This response, highlighting the value of humor in terms of attracting a man, seems to presume "getting a man someday" as one of Aveline's goals -- and Aveline certainly doesn't say otherwise. 

What's interesting about this is that although Isabela doesn't seem particularly insulted by Aveline's remark, she does use it as a springboard for another insult along the same sexual axis: **when Aveline insults her for having sex with too many people, Isabela insults her back for having sex with too few**. I point this out because it provides a rationale for her other comments about Aveline & men -- the attribute she's trying to shame isn't just female masculinity, generally, but specifically, female masculinity attributed as cause for _sexual undesirability_. In other words, Isabela assumes it's important for women to be sexy for men, and she thinks being butch is unsexy to men, and so she makes fun of Aveline for being butch.

#### Act 2

In Act 2, the exchanges between them begin to shift in tone. From what I can tell, this shift is supposed to represent Aveline growing in confidence by learning from Isabela. The hostility between them isn't entirely gone, although at points Aveline does seem more resigned to it.

For example, here's an exchange were Isabela gets on her case about sex, then makes fun of her for interpreting her euphemisms correctly. In this case Aveline still expresses discomfort and doesn't seem to want to deal with her questions, but she also acts like she's used to this and has given up trying to fight it.

> **Isabela:** So, how good is Donnic [her partner]? Is he cocksure?
> 
> **Aveline:** (sighs) Just... get it out of your system.
> 
> **Isabela:** Did he curl your toes?
> 
> **Isabela:** How about "satisfy a demand of your Qun."
> 
> **Isabela:** Or did he Cup your Joining?
> 
> **Isabela:** Or master your taint? That's an old one.
> 
> **Aveline:** Yes, all right? He is an incredibly proficient lover. Happy?
> 
> **Isabela:** Well that's rather personal, don't you think?

Even for Isabela, this exchange is exceptionally cruel. Isabela starts out by inviting sexual conversation, and when Aveline tries to relent and give her what she asked for, Isabela then mockingly treats that response as overstepping and presumptuous. 

What this additionally establishes is that **Isabela will not be satisfied by simply convincing Aveline to talk more openly about sex. Instead, what Isabela wants, specifically, is to hurt and embarrass her.** At no point is she held accountable for this in any way. There is nothing in the narrative that frames these things negatively, and I can't even be sure that the writers or most players are aware that this qualifies as sexual harassment.

Despite all this, Aveline's perspective on Isabela grows more ambivalent, mixing condemnation with admiration. In the following exchange, Aveline indicates that she's concerned about sexual desirability and looking to Isabela as an example, while at the same time verbally disparaging her.

> **Aveline:** How are you so successful with men? You're not that pretty.
> 
> **Isabela:** Cast a wide enough net, and you're bound to catch something.
> 
> **Aveline:** (Laughs) At least you're willing to admit it.
> 
> **Isabela:** Trust me. I've heard, "Get away from me, you pirate hag!" more times than I care to count.
> 
> **Aveline:** Doesn't that bother you?
> 
> **Isabela:** Why should it? They don't know me. I know me. 

This establishes that Isabela is comfortable with rejection, and that's something Aveline marvels at, for some reason.

Later, Aveline brings this up again and seems to have taken some solace in Isabela's words.

> **Aveline:** You're right.
> 
> **Isabela:** About?
> 
> **Aveline:** About knowing who you are.
> 
> **Aveline:** I'm the captain of the guard. I'm loyal, strong, and I don't look too bad naked.
> 
> **Isabela:** Exactly. And if I called you a mannish, awkward, ball-crushing do-gooder, you'd say...?
> 
> **Aveline:** Shut up, whore.
> 
> **Isabela:** That's my girl.

This callback establishes several things about Aveline and Isabela both. In the wake of her worries about sexual desirability, part of Aveline's self-affirmation resolves with the thought "I don't look too bad naked." Her saying this out loud is **a noticeable departure from her usual reservations** , implicitly **linking her boost in confidence with 1) thinking about how she looks naked/how sexy she is, and 2) openly discussing sexiness with Isabela** , the woman who's always badgering her into talking about sex more.

Besides Aveline's change in perspective, what this exchange shows, again, is that Isabela isn't threatened or even bothered by Aveline's sexual insults. Aveline's use of the word "whore" isn't really ever condemned by the narrative, here or anywhere else. Instead, Isabela bizarrely accepts it as a sign of Aveline's improved confidence, or something, and rewards it with her patronizing approval.

#### Act 3

In Act 3, some of their banter is friendlier (Aveline mentions inviting Isabela to a dinner party), but the harassment continues, again following the same old pattern of Isabela's provocation met with Aveline's discomfort. 

For instance, if the courtship quest isn't completed, it's possible for this conversation to happen:

> **Isabela:** So how long has it been? Six years? Seven?
> 
> **Aveline:** None of your business.
> 
> **Isabela:** You ever thought of going to the Rose [a brothel]? They're discreet and remarkably affordable if you forgo all the extras.
> 
> **Aveline:** Quiet!
> 
> **Isabela:** Not that sensual massages aren't lovely, but in a dire situation like yours, you need to get straight to the point.
> 
> **Isabela:** Some good old fashioned, headboard slamming--
> 
> **Aveline:** If you don't shut your mouth, I'm going to slam your head against something.
> 
> **Isabela:** (whistles) Touchy...

These exchanges are representative of a consistent dynamic between them. Basically throughout the game, **Isabela repeatedly disrespects Aveline's personal boundaries and uses sexual comments to make her uncomfortable on purpose.** In response, Aveline usually either threatens her with violence (which Isabela never takes seriously and never seems worried about) or relies on sex-shaming insults (which Isabela never seems bothered by). Across the course of their hostile relationship, Isabela never makes any apology for harassing her, and Aveline never really adjusts her sex-shaming attitude.

With that said, some slight changes do emerge. Aveline seems to learn some confidence by drawing on Isabela's insights, and she also starts to extend some friendlier gestures to her (ex. that dinner party, like I said). Isabela, on the other hand, never feels the need to learn anything from Aveline, and her attitude toward her never seems to change in any noticeable way. **Implicitly this treats the conflict between them as a matter of Aveline's low confidence.** Once Aveline decides to follow Isabela's lead, the interactions between them go somewhat more smoothly, although Isabela continues to harass her. At no point in the narrative is Isabela's harassment framed as harassment, i.e. treated like an actual problem instead of just a gag played for laughs.

### What I Would Change

Everything. I would change everything.

Alright, no, not everything. Note, for the record, this is just an exploration of some possibilities that I personally would find more narratively satisfying. If you would have liked something else instead, that's fine by me.

To begin with, here's what I would keep: Aveline stays serious and sexually reserved. Isabela stays lighthearted and sexually assertive. That much is fine. They should still basically stay who they are. Both of them would initially have strongly negative views of each other and initially interact with some hostility. That much can stay too.

Drawing on canon as a frame of reference, I have an idea of what the conflicts between them would look like, but it would play out a little differently. First of all, I'm writing out all Aveline's uses of the word "whore." In canon it never gets seriously addressed as a specific form of prejudice and for the purposes of this story I'd rather just not have it in there. Second of all, if they're going to be at each other's throats, then their divergence in priorities can mirror each other in this way: **Isabela doesn't understand how Aveline can so confidently focus on strength and pragmatism at the expense of sex appeal, and Aveline views Isabela's promiscuity in terms of compromising herself for others.** This makes sense because it can reflect the tensions they've probably encountered in their own lives. 

For instance, Aveline prioritizes serving as a protector to others and being the serious, determined woman that she is -- and when men communicate that this makes her sexually undesirable to them, she thinks it's more than worth the tradeoff in order to remain true to herself. In this way, she might come to associate male attention with compromise. So in her mind, the more a woman sleeps around, the more of a pushover she is to the whims of others.

Conversely, when Isabela looks at Aveline, all she can see in her is how much she fails to conform to feminine gender roles. This is something that Isabela has personally struggled with as a woman in another traditionally male-dominated profession (that is, piracy), especially in a position of authority (that is, Captain). She understands that sailing, commanding, physical combat, etc. are generally seen as masculine pursuits, but she's afraid of what she might miss out on if she doesn't counterbalance that with highly sexual femininity. In this way, women like Aveline are a manifestation of her worst fears, the "ball-crusher" who's gone too far in the wrong direction instead of aiming for balance, serving as a foil she contrasts herself against for reassurance.

When Isabela and Aveline are brought together, **I'd expect Aveline's disdain to be more passive and dismissive, whereas Isabela expresses her insecurities by projecting her own value system onto Aveline,** trying to provoke and embarrass her for being too supposedly "masculine." This might even follow a pattern loosely similar to their canon dialogue, but I'm writing out most of the extremes. I imagine some of the exchanges could even stay exactly as is. Others, I'd only tweak slightly, like this:

> **_Isabela:_ ** _You have such pretty hair. What a lovely color._
> 
> _**Aveline:** Other children used to laugh at me for having ginger hair._
> 
> _**Isabela:** Really? Aww. I bet you were cute. Did you have pigtails?_
> 
> _**Aveline:** Sometimes._
> 
> _**Isabela:** How precious! Little Aveline, running around the village with her flaming orange pigtails streaming behind her..._
> 
> _**Isabela:** ...and little boys all scattering and screaming for mercy as she approached._
> 
> _**Aveline:** No, that didn't start until I was older._

Or here's another possible exchange, splicing together some of their lines from Acts 1 and 2 and then giving them a different resolution:

> **_Isabela:_ ** _Do men find you intimidating?_
> 
> _**Aveline:** Mostly._
> 
> _**Isabela:** So you've gone for years without, is that right? You must creak like a rusty hinge._
> 
> _**Aveline:** Many people have their lives because of me._
> 
> _**Isabela:** But poor you, no life of your own._
> 
> _**Aveline:** It is my own. That's why men find me intimidating._

In Act 2, once Isabela has had more time to get used to Aveline, she might tentatively approach her for advice about her confidence, allowing for this exchange (reversed from canon):

> **_Isabela:_ ** _How did you ever end up with a husband? You're not that pretty._
> 
> _**Aveline:** I didn't think I would, but Wesley was pretty enough for the both of us._
> 
> _**Isabela:** (Laughs) At least you're willing to admit it._
> 
> _**Aveline:** Trust me, I've heard "No man will ever want you, you ugly hag!" more times than I care to count._
> 
> _**Isabela:** Doesn't that bother you?_
> 
> _**Aveline:** Why should it? They don't know me. I know me._

And later...

> **_Isabela:_ ** _You're right._
> 
> _**Aveline:** About?_
> 
> _**Isabela:** About knowing who you are._
> 
> _**Isabela:** I'm the captain of my own ship. I'm clever, quick, and I'm the master of my own destiny._
> 
> _**Isabela:** I don't need to hear it from anyone else for it to be true._
> 
> _**Aveline:** Exactly._

Or maybe not quite exactly like that, but you get the picture. 

**What I like about taking this other direction for the exchange is that** **it takes the focus off sexual desirability** , which I'd consider an improvement to Isabela's character arc because it'd allow her to reassess that aspect of her values. Both in canon and in this alternative version, Isabela has repeatedly tried to shame Aveline for not being feminine or sexy enough. In this alternative version, though, these attempts have failed because Aveline is already confident in who she is, and this creates the impetus for Isabela to rethink her own priorities.

Over the course of the three acts, Isabela doesn't just simply teach Aveline to be more confident. Aveline already has confidence. In fact, she has _too much_ confidence, i.e. in falsely assuming that _all_ women would want to be like her if they could. If anyone needs to learn confidence, it's Isabela, who puts too much emphasis on being sexually desirable to others. Aveline, meanwhile, equally needs to learn to stop looking down on those different from herself. When Hawke brings them into each other's orbit, Aveline could lose the conviction that women like Isabela are just compromised/lesser versions of herself, and vice versa for Isabela. This would give Isabela's relationship to Aveline more growth on her part while also making her motives more sympathetic instead of just shallow and violating. 

What we got in canon, instead, is this butch vs. slut rivalry where a big, "mannish" woman is embarrassed that men might not be interested in her and has to learn confidence from the woman who repeatedly subjects her to sexual harassment.


End file.
